School Hours: Dangerous Affairs
by 4200LittleBunny2
Summary: For seven years, crime had nearly ceased to exist and the comfort lifestyle of peace brought the Girls the chance to live a normal life – but the Town's need of superpowers vanished along with most of their tolerance. Things start to stir up once three familiar boys return, their desire for revenge still fresh on their agenda.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the Powerpuff girls series, unfortunately, they belong to Craig McCracken. If I owed the series, I would definitely have given it more episodes with the Boys and I wouldn't have allowed Demishita! Powerpuff Girls Z to exist.

**Author's Note:** With that said, I am excited to upload this story to the internet. The idea has been stirring in my head since a long time and while the plot is overused, I think I might be able to capture your interest.

Because there is just no way that the Powerpuff Girls and the Rowdyruff Boys would walk hand in hand and eat lunch together, if they ever decide to attend school together.

Chapter 01

The city of Townsville...

Is as peaceful as any day since the last seven years.

Years ago, financed by the kind-hearted donation of the good citizens of Townsville, the appearance of a 'permanent-security' prison was made. This new type of prison had been the project of a large staff of architects, doctors, psychiatrists, scientists and professors, who vowed to find a way to keep Townsville's criminals from breaking out of prison.

After two years of careful planning, this new prison was finally build just outside of Townsville. Dangerous criminals with a high risk profile, that have a long list of violence on their names, were placed in this high-security prison.

While this prison certainly helped with restraining most super criminals, the town was still frequently plagued by other kind of creatures, like monsters and aliens. It didn't take long for a clever, young Professor to get approval from the Mayor to experiment with genetic codes. It cost the city of Townsville a large sum of money, but the promise of no crimes and damage to property seemed to outweigh the cost of this project.

Eventually, seven years ago, a genetic force field was stabilized around the city. It offered protection against any non-humans that would visit the city. When this idea turned out to be a success, the idea was further enhanced: a black list was created. Normal-type criminals that continued to commit regular crime despite clear, official warnings were excluded out of the town after their sentence; with their DNA profile carefully stored. While the super criminals in the permanent-security prison receive a permanent ban from the city, the punishment would differ for the normal-type criminals, depending on the crime they committed. Most of the time, it wouldn't be longer than five years.

This large project that turned out to be a success, had changed the day-to-day life of its inhabitants completely. While most of them were delighted to walk around the city, without having to fear falling buildings, there was a shout of protest as well. A small percent of Townsville's citizens moved away, not agreeing to this form of protection they called a violation to privacy. Plenty of criminals decided to move away as well and even some super criminals preferred their freedom over their revenge.

All in all, the crime rates did eventually drop with 95%.

What this all meant for the young, seven-year old Powerpuff Girls, you ask?

A quiet chance to grow up...

* * *

Bubbles yawned. She and her sisters were walking down the halls. It was still morning and classes were just about to begin.

"What's wrong, Bubbles?" Blossom asked. Her eyebrow was raised in concern and the blond-haired girl couldn't blame her asking; she was always perky in the morning, unfazed by the early hours. And even through Blossom wasn't exactly their leader anymore, she was constantly fitting over her sisters.

She was probably still the most responsible one out of the three of them. And despite the fact that they're living a happy, peaceful family life with the professor, who is like a father for them... they never had a mother-figure. They loved their father dear to heart, so they never complained. But maybe subconsciously, Blossom picked up that missing part and played it, even though they were all the same age.

"I'm sorry, Blossom," Bubbles smiled. "It's just that I can't get used to sleeping in different beds."

Buttercup rolled her eyes. "Oh grow up, will you? We'd been sleeping in that same bed for years! I thought that we'd never get our own rooms. You know what, I'm glad to have my own place now. That way Blossom here can't steal my clothes!"

"Geez, Buttercup!" the red-head immediately cried. "It happened ONCE! And you didn't even wear that anyway!"

"That doesn't make it right! Besides…!"

Bubbles sighed as their small argument continued. A small smile appeared on her face. They haven't changed a bit, even through all these years. It made her happy, knowing that. The three of them were as close as they've always been.

While her sisters continued arguing, she hugged her backpack. Octi was there with her. The professor minimized him to a keychain. That way she could always have him close to her, without people making fun of it. She never stopped loving Octi.

The bell rang and Blossom and Buttercup immediately stopped their arguing. They were almost late for class!

* * *

"Soooo…" the bored tone of a low voice muttered. Green eyes watched the busy schoolyard below them with disinterest. "This is it?"

The sound itself should have been hardly audible through the loud wind that was blowing past them. But the guys with him could somehow understand him perfectly.

"This is exactly it," his companion smirked. It was amazing how his red baseball hat seemed to be unfazed by the wind, not moving an inch from his head.

"Great. This should be fun," was the reply of the shorter boy next to him. His blue eyes seemed to sparkle in excitement.

If any other student had been on top of that flat rooftop, he would have witnessed three people vanishing into thin air. All they left was a change of colour in the sky; only visible for a split second.

* * *

Lunch break. That is what the loud bell informed as it rang through the entire school.

For the Powerpuff girls, it also meant that their last class together had come to an end. They all had a different schedule for the rest of the day. Blossom, who made the Professor proud with a keen interest in Science, would follow it the rest of the afternoon. Bubbles was excited to spend it at Art Class; she never dreamt of missing it. Buttercup had never signed herself up for extra classes and was officially done for today. She was, however, not planning to sit back and relax. She was in the school's soccer team and there was a big competition coming up this summer. Whenever she had a free period, she would use it to train.

"Hey, girls," Bubbles announced on their way to the cafeteria. "I'll just drop my books into my locker. You go ahead."

"Okay, see you later!" Blossom smiled. She casually hooked her arm into Buttercup's, walking along with her. Buttercup seemed annoyed at the contact at first, but couldn't suppress the small smile on her face. Even though she wouldn't always admit it out loud, her sisters meant the world to her.

Bubbles giggled at the sight, before turning around. She passed the other students on her way to her locker, who were all heading towards the cafeteria as well. She turned left at the end of the hallway and immediately spotted her locker. She had put a heart shaped sticker on it, so that she could easily recognize it was hers. She had the top one, Blossom the one in the middle and Buttercup the one below. A coincidence really, because they never asked for it. It was funny that they were even connected to each other through their lockers.

But, she definitely didn't mind.

* * *

"Tell me, what are we doing here again?"

A large group of giggling girls passed them, taking glances at them and whispering to each other. The clearly irritated dark-haired youth glared directly at them.

"Now, don't be shy..." Brick teased him, placing his hand on his brother's stiff shoulder. He then send a dazzling smile to the group of girls, causing most of them to blush red on the spot. "You know why. Those girls can't use their powers at school. They'll be expelled once they do. It will be the perfect time to get revenge."

Butch slapped the hand of his shoulder. "Don't do that," he said angrily, referring to the giggling group of girls. "I really hate it when they start following us around. Since when have you become so interested in girls anyway?"

Brick shrugged. "They're fun to mess with."

"So about the Powerpuff girls," Boomer interrupted, bringing the two of them back on topic. "You want to start a fight in here?"

"Come on, that's no fun," was the immediate reply. The smile on his expression had faded. "We'll blow up the building, they'll get expelled for fighting us and that's it."

The blonde raised his eyebrow. "But… wasn't that pretty much the point?" he asked.

"Oh, _no_..." Blood-red eyes gleamed dangerously as he straightened his hat. "That isn't nearly good enough... Even killing them wouldn't satisfy me now. Expelling them is just one small step we'll take, in order to _ruin_ their lives."

Blue eyes blinked in surprise, while Butch's arms unfolded in interest.

"But for now, we will let them know we're here," Brick continued. "And as long as we're not doing anything wrong, they can't do anything about it. We will mess with their heads first...there is no need to rush our revenge. We've been blowing up buildings for years. This will be a bit more interesting than that."

"So no fighting yet," Butch frowned. "Well, whatever. This can't be more boring than the last couple of weeks. Hey, Boomer I'm thirsty, get me a drink will you?"

His blond haired brother just stared at him. "Get it yourself."

Brick laughed. "Can't say how glad I am that you've grown a spine these last few years. Come on, we'll get it ourselves. I can use a Coke right now."

"I'm not thirsty, actually."

"Well, fine, suit yourself. Come on, Butch." The two of them walked away together, leaving Boomer behind. He didn't mind much, they were always together after all. Sometimes it was nice to be alone.

He leaned against the wall. There were hardly any students around anymore. Everyone had pretty much gone to the cafeteria already. He wasn't really hungry or thirsty himself. Even though he would never admit it to his brothers, being here made him nervous. Seven years ago they'd moved to another town, so they hadn't seen the Powerpuff girls since then. It wasn't like he was afraid of their strength or anything. Definitely not, they were a lot stronger than before, but…

But… they hadn't seen each other since they were children and… well… things were different back then, weren't they?

A loud thump interrupted his thoughts. "Oh dear…" a girl's voice resounded.

When he looked around the corner, he felt his heart skip a beat. A girl with long, blonde pigtails and bright, blue eyes quickly bend down to grab the pile of fallen books together. With one hand she shoved the books together. With the other she tried to keep her skirt down from crawling up.

It was like time had stopped. He recognized her immediately, even though it's been years since he last saw her. He felt his cheeks flush as the memory of that kiss went through his head, but he quickly dismissed it.

She was… tall, was the first thing that popped in his mind. He nearly hit himself for it. Of course she was tall! She's all grown up! She's… actually… kind of pretty.

Wait, what the hell was he thinking? She was a _Powerpuff girl_!

He looked around. The rest of the hallway was deserted. If he didn't take this opportunity, Brick would kill him. He had lost the nickname 'wimp' years ago and he wasn't willing to earn it back now.

Taking a breath, he forced his legs to move. He was almost right in front of her when she stood up with the pile of books and glanced at him. With a small cry, she dropped them immediately.

In an impulse, he grabbed her tiny wrist in his hand and pushed her against the lockers.

"Hello, Bubbles," he whispered. "Remember me?"


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 02

For a constricted moment, Bubbles forgot to breathe. Her heart pounded heavily in her chest as the same eyes from years ago looked into hers. It has been such a long time ago – years, _seven_ years – but that shade of blue was permanently glued into her memory.

A darker blue, cold and intimidating, like the sky during an approaching storm. She was dreadfully aware of who she was looking at, recognizing him in a heartbeat. "Boomer..." And the moment she released his name into the open, she became anxious for the appearance of his brothers. But they weren't in the hallway with him, no... they were completely alone and he had her trapped against her locker.

"I'm glad to see you still remember me," he responded. His voice had changed, it was a lot more smooth and controlled then the last memory she had of it.

Widened light-blue eyes slowly blinked. "How... could I forget?" she breathed. The childhood she spend fighting crime and saving the day felt like an eternity ago. But she would never be able to forget the battles, most of them still vibrant in her memory. What she remembered wasn't the thrill of victory Buttercup missed and it wasn't the satisfaction of doing something good for the town like Blossom would say.

Eyes filled with hatred and resentment towards _them_, the Powerpuff Girls, every time they would gaze upon their enemies. _That_ is what she recalled the most.

Even though she could count the times they fought with the Rowdyruff Boys on one hand, each fight with them was edged deep into her memory. They were strong, ruthless and had no remorse for anything they did. Even at a kindergarten age, she had considered them dangerous enemies. When they disappeared seven years ago, she had silently hoped never to see them again.

"What… what are you doing here?" she asked. Somehow, she couldn't keep her voice from shaking.

"Afraid, aren't you?" he smirked. He easily towered over her with his length, looking down at her with a satisfied glint in his eyes. "That's good. You should be."

She felt her heart race inside her chest. He wasn't easing his grip on her, a firm hold that no ordinary girl could break out of. She didn't want to use superpowers to fight her way out. If the principle would hear word of it...

Oh. The realization only then sank in and she paled at the thought. She wouldn't be able to defend herself at all, would she? If he decided to hit her right now, she could never hit him back. If she damaged school property and got into a fight, she and her sisters would be expelled... She didn't want to imagine the disappointment on their Professor's face when that happens.

"Let me go," she pleaded. "I don't want to fight... please."

Instead of allowing her space, he stole more of it as he leaned closer. The back of her head was pressed against her locker when she squirmed away as far as she could. She could feel his warm breath on her face when he whispered to her: "Are we fighting now?"

"...Not-not sure," she stammered.

The next moment, she watched blonde eyelashes flutter, a light confused expression then appearing on his face. She held her breath when the intensity of his stare increased, seeming to search her face for an answer. Being stared at from such a close distance, made her incredibly self-conscious. She couldn't tell if she preferred a punch in the face, to this very uncomfortable form of intimidation. That _is_ what he was trying to do, right?

When he finally broke their eye-contact and lowered his gaze, she exhaled softly. But she quickly noticed that there was no loss of fixation in that expression, that now stared closely at something else. And for a passing moment, she couldn't imagine what he was so interested in. Until she tensed, her lips parting when she realized that was exactly what he was staring at.

The method they had used to defeat the Rowdyruff Boys the first time they met.

The one thing little boys feared the most; getting kissed by a girl.

It destroyed them the first time and made them stronger the second time they'd battled. But when that turned out to have a side effect; shrinking their powers by a loss of muscularity, Him made sure that their kisses wouldn't affect the Boys' powers anymore.

Kisses on the cheek. Lips used as a weapon. That juvenile innocence of five-year old girls, that didn't think too much into that strategy... Recalling it now only made her painfully aware of their naivety. And she could envision his thoughts, thinking back at a moment that forever symbolized their downfall.

His eyes widened when he seemed to realize something and he abruptly released his grip on her, almost making her stumble forward in surprise. Stunned, she watched him turn away from her. "See you around," were the words that he spoke, a promise in them that she hadn't fail to acknowledge.

Bubbles was perplexed when he left her side, walking away from her with long, even steps. She kept her gaze firmly on his back, not daring to blink, until he disappeared out of sight.

She swallowed the lump in her throat and wrapped her arms around her protectively, allowing the locker to support her weight as she leaned against it. Her fingers were shaking, her heart racing. It was needless to say that nothing of that sort had ever happened to her. He left her a mess and she had to clutch her favourite Octi tight in order to take a deep, calming breath.

She had to think rationally now. Boomer was here, inside their school and he was here to stay. He wouldn't come back to Townsville on his own; Brick and Butch must be inside the building as well. There was no doubt in her mind that they were here for revenge. If they were actually seriously committed to studying, he wouldn't have assaulted her at the first given opportunity– or threatened her? Or, what was it, really?

Sinking through her knees, she tardily started to pick up the books she had dropped before. All of her loose notes were scrambled, but she didn't feel like reorganizing it now. She placed everything back into her locker, before she closed and relocked it.

...She had to warn the Girls. She didn't want to imagine what kind of hell breaks loose if Buttercup or Blossom would run into those three. Using any of their superpowers was illegal by school policy and while this rule restricted them, she didn't think it would faze the Boys. And giving this more thought, she honestly couldn't understand why she wasn't attacked just now.

Slow, hesitant steps she made towards the cafeteria gradually changed into a dash, the wind blowing past her as she forced her legs to move. She didn't take the main road, wanting to avoid the path Boomer took. She ran around it instead; it was a detour but she felt more comfortable taking it. All the emotions that had build up inside her, anxiety, embarrassment, humiliation and dread, turned into the fuel... and that determination to reach her sisters, didn't falter. The handful of students wandering through the other hallways, gave her a strange look when she passed them. She didn't stop or slow down for anyone, not even for the teachers.

With heated cheeks and a quickened heart rate – she wasn't even sure if they came from the psychical exercise itself – she reached the cafeteria, breaking off her sprint. Her eyes roomed around the area in search of her sisters inside the large crowd. And she found them. But so had the remaining Rowdyruff Boys.

She cringed at the sight of a heated discussion and started manoeuvring her way through the other students. If she couldn't break it off, she at least wanted to be able to back her sisters up.

"What are you doing here!?" Blossom shouted. With about seventy students animatedly chatting with each other, the cafeteria was loud enough not to attract unwanted attention. The students closest to them noticed her shouting, but many turned their heads away in disinterest. Arguments were a common sight within their age group; they happened almost daily during lunch breaks.

Buttercup glared fiercely at them. "You're here to pick a fight?"

Bubbles quickly stepped beside her sister, taking a glance at the rest of the Boys. She tensed at their fully-grown appearance, a treacherous coldness about them she had noticed in Boomer as well.

Brick's eyes radiated in pride and intelligence and the smug smile he gave them was almost hostile in its own way. "What are you talking about?" he taunted. "We're just getting something to drink." Bubbles just then noticed the Coca Cola bottles in their hands. When she turned back to the soda machine, she was surprised to find it intact.

Blossom narrowed her eyes. "You're not here for a drink," she stated.

"Maybe we are, maybe we're not," Butch said, sounding bored with her. "Why is that your business?"

This ticked Buttercup off and she uncrossed her arms almost aggressively. "You know damn well why!"

Bubbles tensed at the sight of the last Rowdyruff Boy entering the cafeteria. It was three against three now and she feared a fight.

"…Oh hey Boomer," Brick said, acknowledging his brother, before shifting his attention back to them. Blood-red eyes sparkled with cruel delectation as he tilted the bottle of coke in their direction. "There's no need to get so worked up about it... You could have just told me that you're thirsty as well."

Blossom nearly lost it at that point, her cheeks reddened in anger. When she took an aggravated step forward, so did the ruthless leader and suddenly they were eye to eye.

Bubbles gasped and even Buttercup tensed.

Thick suspense hang between the two of them, both unwilling to back down. Blossom clenched her fist, her eyes reflecting only hatred for the person in front of her. Brick's sly grin widened at her vicious state and he leaned forward, invading more of her personal space. "Don't frown like that, babe," he commented. "It ruins your pretty face."  
Blossom stiffened, her lips parting in silent bewilderment as she could only stare at him in response. She had been prepared for just about anything, but never for a remark like that.

Bubbles then took a glance at Boomer and noticed that he was staring directly at her. He wasn't even being discreet about it. Embarrassed and uncomfortable, she tried to ignore it and focus on Blossom instead. Buttercup had quickly come to her aid, grabbing her sister's shoulder and forcing her to take a step back. She stepped in front of her, her own green eyes livid as they challenged his radiant, red-coloured ones. "Yeah? What are you going to do about it?" she sneered. "Now get the hell out of here... You're not here to study. If it's a fight you want, I'll be _more than happy_ to take it outside."

Butch ever so slightly smirked at her words.

Boomer then spoke up for the first time, interrupting their stare-down. "We're staying," he announced. "This is a free country and we can study wherever we want."

Buttercup shot a glare in his direction, obviously irritated by the truth in his words.

"But don't take me the wrong way," the blond-haired boy then said. "...I couldn't be more committed." His eyes travelled back to Bubbles, who suddenly felt very uneasy. Somehow, she had the feeling that he wasn't talking about school or the classes at all.

"Besides, are we doing anything wrong?" Brick cut in with an all too innocent smile.

Buttercup slowly loosened her battle stance. They weren't doing anything at all.

"So… the real question is..." Butch commented, throwing his empty drink over his shoulder without a mere glance. The glass travelled through the air, landing perfectly inside a trash can, eight feet from where they were standing. Not even the sound of breaking glass resounded. "What are _you_ going to do about it?"

The sharp, ringing sound of the school bell not only signalled the end of their break. People raised from their seats and hurriedly made their way towards their own classes. The crowd that formed around them, forced them to break apart. The argument had been discontinued and they soon lost eye-contact. It didn't take long before they completely lost sight of their enemy.

"I can't believe this," Buttercup hissed.

"They'll... slip up," Blossom proclaimed, more to herself then to her sisters. "You'll see."

With only a few minutes left to reach their classrooms, they weren't able to discuss things further. They exited the cafeteria together, but before long, they were obligated to take different directions. It was sooner than any of them would have liked.

"We'll see each other soon, alright?" Blossom promised, concerned pink eyes staring at both of her siblings. She squeezed their hands reassuringly.

Bubbles found herself nodding and Buttercup silently averted her gaze, obviously still upset. They all were, in their own way.

The blonde walked up the stairs towards her own class, glancing back just in time to watch her sisters disappear. The need to talk to them about the main situation was almost overwhelming... at least art class would help her express her feelings on paper.

She reached the top floor and froze when she neared the classroom. Her heart sank to her stomach once she noticed Boomer just outside the room, leaning against the wall. When their eyes met, his lips stretched into a smile and she had the strong feeling that he had been waiting for her. Her eyes widened when the pieces suddenly clicked together. "You…" she breathed. "…took the same classes?"

He didn't answer, but the fact that he turned to enter the classroom, was enough of a confirmation. The second bell rang and she had no choice but to follow him, closing the door behind her. Class had started, but her teacher wasn't strict. She was greeted enthusiastically by the older woman, before her attention shifted to the boy beside her.

"My," she exhaled. "Do you two look alike… are you related?"

Boomer ignored the question completely, walking past her without even acknowledging her. Bubbles, feeling somewhat responsible, felt her cheeks warm up in embarrassment. "No, miss Clariss, we're not related..." she answered quietly.

But her teacher didn't even seem aware of his rude behaviour and cheerfully clapped her hands together. "Class," she announced, turning a few heads. "As of today, we have a new student who will be attending this class. This is his first class, so let's make friends with him and get along just peachy."

The boy in question sharply turned around, his irritated glare hard to miss.

Oh. Dear. She was so used to her teacher's strange way of words, that she completely forgot that she had the tendency to speak to them as if they were toddlers. Bubbles slowly sank into her seat, her hands nervously placed together.

"This lesson we'll work in pairs of two," the teacher continued. "Please choose a buddy."

She turned her attention to the other students at her table, a wave of relieve washing over her when a classmate of hers smiled excitedly at her. Abigail was her name and they had done a few paintings together in the past. They shared a mutual agreement when their gazes met. "Hey Abigail," she called out to her. "Shall we – "

She started and almost yelped when her wrist was grabbed, lifting her hand high up in the air in one fluid movement. "Buddies!" is what her assaulter called out and for a moment, she was astounded when she met the deep, blue eyes.

The shout that she would almost consider enthusiastic despite the clearly sarcastic tone of his voice, had taken her aback. "I…" Bubbles said, stammering. "I… really don't…"

"Good for you, dear!" miss Clariss praised him. And suddenly she realized why he had shouted the word through the entire classroom. Bubbles' objections died in her throat, when she realized that she wouldn't be able to back out of this.

"_Peachy_," he stated, releasing her before turning away. While she was still trying to progress the situation, he was already collecting the supplies.

Abigail had teamed up with her neighbour, sending the Powerpuff an approving smile. This only made her bit her lip restlessly.

Well, it... it's just a painting. It couldn't be too bad... right?


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 03

Her sisters were still on her mind when Blossom made her way towards Science class. She was worried for them. Now that they were apart, she couldn't keep an eye on a situation that was already spinning out of control. Her worst fear is that they'd corner one of them. She didn't want to imagine what those Boys were capable of and she couldn't even disregard murder in that list. As children, they had already been determined to destroy the three of them. And it didn't seem like they suddenly had a change of heart.

When the Professor installed that force field around the city, the Rowdyruff Boys were never seen in Townsville again. Not that they had frequent run-ins with them, but their disappearance didn't go unnoticed. They weren't caught for a crime they committed and were never send to the permanent-security prison. They were one of the very few super-criminals that never received a ban from the city.

What worried her was the power and confidence the Rowdyruff Boys radiated... They haven't been sitting back. They, as the Powerpuff Girls haven't fought since a long time. In fact, the only training they had been doing day by day for the last few years, was trying to _restrain_ their powers to the best of their ability.

She bit the inside of her cheek. They weren't prepared for this.

Entering the classroom deep in thoughts, it took her a longer moment to notice the red-haired boy – the symbol of this approaching danger – on a seat in her classroom.

She halted, her pink eyes widening when they gazes met. Wait. Had she stumbled into the wrong classroom by accident?

Her eyes travelled to the faces of the other students and she couldn't deny that this was, indeed, Science class. Brick and Science? These were two words she would never think to use in the same sentence.

Her gaze hardened at the realization. Science was an interest subject, students attend on voluntarily base only. They were required to write themselves in for these extra classes. He was here on purpose. He was here for her. If it was to annoy her or if he was actually planning something, she could only guess at, but either way, it wasn't making her feel any better about it.

All students had placed themselves in the study area of the classroom, where they would always receive theory lessons. This seemed like one of those days. That wouldn't have bothered her at all, if it wasn't for the fact that there were only a handful of tables. Most of the seats had already been taken and the bell that rang a second later, explained why.

The only available seats she could now take, were next to Brick and another classmate that constantly talked about himself. Figuring that Brick could easily be half that bothersome, she decided to walk right past him.

However, when she did, his hand caught her wrist with super-natural speed. She tensed, turning her head back to him. He gave her a look that said that that she wasn't going anywhere and she almost gulped at the intensity of his stare. She noticed the slight curling of his lips before she was pulled towards him with amazing strength. In the sudden pull, she lost her balance and fell right into his lap, her toes barely touching the ground. The whole class had been following this event and the girls were already gasping in delight.

She felt her cheeks flush while he just smirked at her, holding her down.

"Would you rather sit here or in the seat next to me during the next ninety minutes?" he asked smoothly, his wide smirk never leaving his face. "Your choice."

Blossom only felt her shame deepen and moved quietly from his lap. She hesitated for a moment when she noticed that everyone was staring at her. Cries like "Go, Blossom!" were even shouted and she couldn't help but feel obligated to take that seat. She wouldn't hear the end of it if she refused now. The whole school had already been whispering about the 'three hot new students' in the hallways. Besides, she didn't want to lose against him.

Hoping that her embarrassment wouldn't be too noticeable, she took the seat next to him. He smirked when he got exactly what he wanted and the red-headed Powerpuff girl hadn't failed to notice.

Never in her life, had she imagined to sit in a classroom with the leader of the Rowdyruff Boys... sharing a table. Not without throwing each other straight into the nearest wall, at least. Her back was straightened, her shoulders tense, her arms stiffly lying on top of her desk, fingers clasped together.

"Good afternoon," their teacher greeted, when he entered the classroom with a stack of paper in his hands. They were spread around the classroom, their assignment to read an article about the latest development around supramolecular chemistry. She gazed at the assignment in front of her with enough intensity to burn a hole through the paper. She read the top sentence over and over again, but the written words didn't linger in her mind.

What wasn't helping her ability to concentrate, was that Brick decided to read her face instead of the article in front of him.

Ignore him. Concentrate. As long as he's not doing anything violent, things are fine.

Keep reading. Don't give him the idea that he's in control of the situation. Whatever he's plotting, he's not going to do it in a class full of people. He's just trying to –.

Her gaze had been so completely focused on the white, rectangle shaped paper, that she nearly jumped out of her seat when his hand slightly touched hers. Her pink eyes met his gaze at once. "You look so _tense_," he whispered to her. "Why don't you loosen up?"

She quickly yanked her hand away. "This _isn't_ a joke," she hissed to him. "Just tell me why you're here!"

"Blossom Utonium!" She flinched at the deep, loud call of her name. Her teacher gave her a stern look before shaking his head disapprovingly, causing the girl to shrink in her seat. She had... never been called out before...

Hearing the boy next to her chuckle, made her to feel even more embarrassed.

_This isn't fair._

* * *

"Uhm..." Bubbles trailed quietly, her hands nervously folded over her chest as she eyed the blank A3 sized paper in front of them. Their teacher had instructed them to create 'a masterpiece with your intertwining, creative minds'. "W-what... what do you want to paint?"

Her palms were sweaty, her shoulders tense. They were sitting right next to each other and the close distance made her frantic. He had _forced_ her against her locker not more than an hour ago. She couldn't help but be agitated by his presence.

While her back couldn't possibly be more straight, he casually rested his head against the palm of his hand, looking at the paper with a bored expression. She had the feeling that this will end up with her worst grade ever. But if that was the worst possible outcome of this class, she couldn't be more relieved. She could easily imagine worse things.

"I don't care," replied the blond-haired boy next to her. "Whatever you want."

...Well, that helped. Why did he insist to pair up in the first place? He wasn't interested in art. His expressive indifference about it was proof enough. She felt really awkward talking to him, but they had to work in pairs. They _had_ to discuss these type of things.

"How... How about a field?" she proposed. "We could draw grass and trees and animals like rabbits and squirrels... we could include a rainbow too and a pond and-" She abruptly stopped talking when she noticed that he had raised his eyebrow at her. She felt so embarrassed, what was she supposed to say to him? Of course he didn't like that at all!

"Sorry," he chuckled. "I just... didn't think you were still into that kind of stuff."

She kept her eyes focused on the empty sheet of paper. It wasn't like she was obligated to open her mouth, but she found herself doing it anyway. "Well... I am..." she muttered.

A silence then formed between them and Boomer slowly straightened his position. He was studying her desolated expression and when she noticed that, she wanted nothing more than to bury her face into her hands. She had no idea why they haven't attacked them yet, but if they were here to make them miserable, they've succeeded.

"Fine," he then said. And at first, she couldn't comprehend what he was saying. When she glanced up, serious dark-blue eyes stared back at her. "We'll paint a field."

"...But," she mumbled quietly. "...You don't like that."

The blond-haired boy raised his shoulders apathetically. "I told you that we'd do whatever you wanted to paint."

Her lips parted silently, only clear surprise displayed on her expression. When she took a small breath, a strange sense of relief entered her system as well. When she averted her eyes, glancing at the empty piece of paper, her lips spread into the smallest smile.

If she had looked up, she would have seen a change into that unwavering gaze of his. At that moment, she would have seen something dangerous flicker... that would've intimidated her more than any hate-filled glare ever had.

* * *

The black-haired girl gasped for air, her hands resting on her knees for support. Sweat was dripping from her forehead and the adrenaline in her body made her feel as if she was on fire. It felt incredibly good. This was one of the things she _loved_ to do.

Early this morning she had decided to use her free period to practice. Her sisters were in class, studying their own interests. Besides, she couldn't be slacking off with such an important match coming up.

Wiping the sweat from her forehead, she was ready for another round. Once more she sprinted towards the soccer ball and kicked it with all her strength – her own of course. It would be a huge disadvantage to the other team if she'd use her superpowers. Her teammates should consider themselves lucky; she was pretty good without them.

She jogged to the ball to retrieve it once more. For the past twenty minutes she had been practicing shooting, imagining the other players while maneuvering her way towards the goal. Today she'd been practicing more fiercely than usual, but that was for a very good reason.

_She was pissed. _

Absolutely pissed that those guys dared to show up at their school. At their _schoo_l_!_ The only damn place in this damn town where even the tiniest hint of supernatural strength results in a week's detention. Their principle adores the Powerpuff Girls alright!

Another kick; another goal.

What she would do to kick those three sorry asses back to where they came from… But instead of challenging them into a fight, those boys had to play nice! There was nothing she could do about it and this infuriated her.

The sun made its first appearance of the day, peeking through the solemn grey clouds. She took a ragged breath and braced herself. Counting the seconds in her head – 3, 2, 1 – she took off in a sprint. Her eyes focused on the goal ahead of her, narrowed in concentration, as each step lifted her into the air. She quickly reached her target and knowing that the soccer ball was right in front of her, she moved her leg before glancing down and…

The heck was that?

She almost froze in mid-air, her eyes catching sight of the shadow of a tree that looked… off. She sharply spun around, spotting the tree in less than a second. And as she had expected, there was a person sitting onto the branches.

…How did she miss that!? She blamed the stupid camouflaging color of his clothes.

"_You_," Buttercup shouted. "What the _hell_ do you think you're doing?"

The boy in the tree wasn't fazed. "Enjoying the sun I guess…" he answered.

She took an immediate step forward. "Do you think you can just go around and spy on me? That I wouldn't notice!?"

He casually stretched his arms above his head. "Took you long enough…" he commented. "But no, I wasn't spying on you. Happened to sit in this tree. You happened to come to this field. Didn't bother moving."

"You expect me to believe that?" the girl fired back.

This time, Butch actually laughed. "Trust me… I wouldn't be bored enough to waste my time like that."

"Well," Buttercup started, for a moment at loss for words. "Go find another damn tree to waste more of your time."

"Why should I move? You're the one having issues here. I don't give a crap whether you're here or on the other side of town. Besides, I was here first and I'm pretty comfortable."

Her hands started to shake with anger and she tried to restrain herself from knocking the whole tree down. "I don't care that you came here first!" she yelled. "If you want to fight than we can have one, right after school. But don't you _dare_ follow us around!"

The black-haired boy jumped out of the tree. Buttercup was immediately on guard at this sudden movement and glared at him as he moved closer. Resting his hands in his pockets he leaned towards her. In a low voice, he then spoke softly to her. "You know, you give yourself _way_ too much credit."

She was dumbfounded when he then turned his back on her. What, why!? They were in the middle of something! He just walked away from her and it ticked her off.

When he crossed half the field, he suddenly halted and looked back. Prepared for anything, she took a fighting stance.

"By the way," he said, raising his voice. "You kick well."

…Wait – what? Was he serious –

Chuckling, he added: "_For a girl_."

She felt her cheeks burn. How-how _dare_…!?

He then walked off. It took all of her willpower to stop herself from attacking him. She felt as if she could strangle something. With rage building up inside her and with nothing to turn to except for a soccer ball, she ran towards it and kicked it as hard as she could. It disappeared through the trees with speed it could have never accomplished with a normal kick.

The… the _nerve!_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 04

…He's really bad at painting.

That was the first thing she noticed when she looked at a big brown blob that was supposed to be a bench. It didn't even closely resemble a square. She wasn't a person to judge others on their skills, but this was… _really_ bad.

She could have appreciated it if he at least showed some effort, but he was holding the brush like he was trying to stab the paper. He showed little interest in the painting at all. She had to constantly urge him to paint something, something she didn't like to do because she felt so insecure around him. It just felt weird.

That and he was constantly watching her every move. The eyes on her were making her extremely uncomfortable, making her screw up more than once.

The drawing looked more like a blue, yellow, green and brown battlefield than the nature she wanted it to be. It was a disaster…

"…Perhaps we should start over…" she muttered, thinking out loud.

"Why?" was the immediate answer. It startled her a little. He hadn't said much these last ten minutes and she hadn't predicted a response right away.

"W-well… you know…" she started, folding her hands together. How could she bring this? Would he be insulted? Maybe he would even get mad… What should she do then? She didn't want a bad grade, but she didn't want to provoke him either.

Opening her mouth, she tried to find a way to bring this peacefully. "It's…" she hesitantly started. "It's…"

"Beautiful!" a voice suddenly cried. Bubbles nearly jumped from her seat. She took a calming breath when noticed that it was only her teacher, standing behind her. In all her thoughts, she hadn't even noticed.

"How-how abstract!" the elder woman continued, pushing herself between the two to see the painting closer. She noticed Boomer glaring daggers at the sudden contact. Her teacher wasn't the most observant one.

"This is a field, is it not?" the woman said. "How wonderfully creative of you! Bubbles," – who flinched when her shoulders were grabbed – "I'm surprised, you always try to draw as realistically as possible. It's really refreshing to see you create something new!"

"A-ah, thank you, miss Clariss," she said softly.

"You know," she continued, releasing her. "I really think you should leave it like this. You can clean up and leave it here. I'll grade it later." She then looked at Boomer and smiled wide. "Great first class for you, sweetie. I'll be expecting more!" With that, she ran off to the next table to look at the rest of the paintings.

"She's… really special huh?" Bubbles awkwardly smiled, trying to lighten the mood a little, but the blonde next to her only scowled. She absently bit her lip as her eyes drifted towards the creation she only saw fit for the trashcan. This was art? Really…? This was absolutely the most confusing day ever. Nothing happened as it should be.

"You hate it, don't you," came her working partner's voice.

Caught in surprise, it took a few seconds for her to find the right words. "Well… it's not really my style, but you know, our teacher loves it and she knows best."

"I don't give a crap about what she thinks," came the fierce response. "We were going to do a painting _you'd_ like, not one that crazy woman likes."

She stared at him, subconsciously trying to find truth behind his words. That sounded almost… thoughtful. She couldn't help but think it over. It was almost suspicious.

His hand picked up the painting. The shade of his eyes slowly changed to another color; _red_. Panicking, she jumped him, placing her arms in front of his eyes. "No!" she yelled. "Don't destroy it, please!"

It was silent for a few seconds and Bubbles suddenly realized how awkward this position was. She was hugging his _face_ while she stood behind him in some kind of weird embrace. Her classmates at the table were openly staring at her. "A-ah well," she stuttered, immediately releasing him. "I-I'm fine with it, really. You know, now that I'm looking closer, it's actually kind of nice." She nervously laughed and started picking up the used brushes.

He stared directly into her eyes and glared. "Liar."

She felt her cheeks warm up when she started to get angry. "I'll just do my best with the next one. Right now it's alright because my teacher likes it and I don't want to start over!"

He kept glaring at her and the silence was nerve-wrecking. She stared back, not wanting to give in, but those dark blue eyes seemed to go through her very being. Her anger slowly subsided and the awkwardness once more grabbed hold of her. If she averted her eyes now, it would seem like she's doubting her decision. She couldn't do that.

However, the blonde male was the first one to break their eye contact. Without saying another word, he suddenly grabbed her hands. Her first reaction was to yank them back, but he only reached for the paint brushes, forcibly taking them from her. He then grabbed the rest of the painting supplies almost aggressively and jumped off his chair.

Bubbles' eyes followed him as he walked towards the sink. She felt relieved somehow, but also very confused. Why was he so angry with her over a painting he wasn't even interested in?

* * *

Thank god class was over. Blossom had never been this glad to hear the bell ring, especially not in her favorite class. Sitting next to _him_ proved to be a living hell. Occasionally he would brush his leg against hers or touch her arm. It made her incredibly jumpy and she wanted nothing more than to hit him for it.

The moment the bell rang, she jumped up and grabbed her belongings. The sooner she got out; the better.

Without a glance towards the main cause of her discomfort, she headed straight for the door. She was the first to reach it while all her other classmates were still packing. She even saw her teacher frown at her quick departure. It made her feel even worse about everything.

_It's all his fault._

She was about to leave the room when he suddenly called out for her. She froze. …Did he _really_? What did he want? God, weren't those ninety minutes horrible enough!?

Annoyed, she turned around to see the autumn-haired boy's devious smile. The girls in her class watched him with curiosity, waiting to see what this was about. She couldn't deny that she was nervous. This was a lot different than fighting. At least she knew what was coming then.

"Hey… listen…" he spoke in a voice that made her cringe. It was seductive and low, a voice that really shouldn't be coming from him. "Thank you for the note earlier."

She raised an eyebrow. What was he playing at?

"I really appreciate it," he simply continued, his eyes containing an excited gleam. "It must have taken a lot of courage to write it."

She opened her mouth to question him, but he quickly cut her off. "I think it's flattering that you have these feelings for me already, but I'd like us to know each other a little better first." The whispers loudly started throughout the classroom.

Her mouth fell wide open and she could feel her cheeks warming up. No… _no way_…

"Don't be embarrassed," he smirked, grabbing his bag and walking towards her. "We could go on a date like you suggested." He leaned a bit closer, red eyes gleaming excitedly and she backed away with a scowl on her face.

That's _it._ She was going to hit him. _She was going to hit him!_

Before she could fully lift her arm, he grabbed it before capturing her other arm as well. Cries of her fellow classmates echoed in her ears, but the tight grip on her arms clearly stated that this wasn't a romantic scene at all.

"_That's_ not very nice," he softly commented, keeping his voice low to avoid overhearing. "If you can't play nice, I won't either…"

"You_… you –,"_ she hissed, searching for the right words that could begin to describe all the frustration and anger that seemed to explode inside her. She just wanted to scream out loud.

He released her and she quickly took a few steps back, before she would snap and attack him right then and there. She couldn't risk getting expelled for something as _idiotic_ and _childish_ as that. She _refused_ to let him ruin her reputation any further, but that smirk was bringing the worst out of her. Right now she didn't trust her own self-esteem, so she was forced to do something she absolutely despised.

She turned around and ran out of the classroom.

For the first time, she gave up a fight.

* * *

"…What?" she called out. The moment Buttercup met her sister's gaze, she had taken a step forward. Blossom, taken aback, hesitated for a moment before answering. This caused green eyes to narrow dangerously. "What did they do!?" she raised her voice.

"Nothing!" Blossom cried out, but the red cheeks and frowned eyebrows didn't fool anyone and she even noticed Bubbles' skeptical gaze. "…Well, I - He…" She took a breath herself, her own gaze darkening. She met her sisters in the hallway right after almost hitting the leader of the Rowdyruff Boys. She was still furious and it showed on her face; she never was good at pretending she is fine. Not that it would have fooled her sisters… they all know each other to well for that. "Listen… we have a problem. We all know that those boys aren't here to study."

Buttercup folded her arms in annoyance. "Obviously," she commented. "But they're not fighting us either."

"Something we should be grateful for," Bubbles spoke up. "If they attack us here, we can't fight back. The principle will throw us out… and I really like my classmates."

Blossom sighed, a thoughtful frown on her face. "The school's zero-tolerance policy against superpowers is a pretty well-known fact. That must be the reason why they decided to show up here, out of all places."

Bubbles nodded, averting her gaze. "So that we can't defend ourselves… "

"…I doubt that they won't take that opportunity."

Buttercup then stepped forward, her forest green eyes glistering dangerously. "Girls, this problem can be easily solved…" she announced, clenching her fist in front of her face. "We'll wait for them outside and beat _the crap_ out of them."

The blonde-haired girl flinched. "Wait – no, we can't do that!"

This resulted with a heated glare from her sister. "Whose side are you on!?"

Blossom quickly stepped between them, her determined pink eyes sternly gazing into her sister's. "Bubbles is right. Listen Buttercup, if we fight them now, _we're_ the ones committing crime." She really hated having to admit this. "They haven't done anything illegal. We can't just beat up people we don't like. Townsville has changed. We're not the blameless heroes we used to be."

Bubbles nodded silently. When they had been superheroes, the city had loved them for their protection and security. When that force-field offered the citizens both instead, the need for superpowers reduced and eventually ceased to exist. The city started to rely on the police and with a low crime rate, they were finally capable of the job. The Powerpuff Girls were no longer fighting on the side of justice. Their importance to the city shrank and so did most of their privileges. When they started living their lives as normal citizens, the law started to view them as such as well.

Buttercup gritted her teeth, the truth behind those words sinking in. "You can't expect me to stand back and let them get away with everything they throw at us."

Her sister's austere stare didn't falter. "We can't get into a fight," she repeated. "But that doesn't mean that we can't guard ourselves. We have to be smart about this."

Bubbles raised her head. "But what can we do?" she asked. "They're still in our classes."

Blossom nodded. "The only classes I'm concerned with, are the extra classes. My Science class and your Art class are our weak spots – we're isolated in those. As long as we stay together in every other class, they can't catch us by surprise," their leader told them. "What that means for our private lives, is that we can't sit apart anymore. The three of us have to stay together as a group, or they'll take advantage of it."

"Great," their dark-haired sister replied sarcastically. "Just give them more power over us that way."

"We don't know what they're planning," she countered. "And I don't think those boys will keep this peaceful act up for long. Once we're able to overview the situation a little better, we can think of a better strategy."

Buttercup averted her gaze, silently glaring at the ground. "Fine, whatever."

"I'm okay with it," Bubbles agreed as well.

"Let's just go home for now," she then announced. The Professor has to work late tonight. We still need to visit the groceries store, remember?"

They had to agree with that. Staying on enemy's grounds for longer than necessary seemed like a bad idea anyway. And despite the fact that Townsville nowadays would frown upon damaged property, they were a little less vulnerable outside. The three young girls left the main hall together, heading towards the school's main exit.

They never realized that their conversation hadn't been private.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 05**

"Why did we go back to this dump in the first place?" the dark-haired youth complained, kicking the nearest broken item – that happened to be a robotic claw – out of the way. The floor was covered with broken metallic parts and snapped electric wires. Electric bills hadn't been paid for years, yet the electricity was still up and running. It looks like its owner had found his own way to create energy… and it had been powerful enough to keep the lights on for longer than six years.

"Quit nagging about it," Brick told him, using his heat vision to melt a large data processor, that was tilted in front of a doorway. In just two seconds, it had been reduced to the size of a disk. "Unless _you_ want to get a job."

"Bullshit. We had plenty of cash at home," Butch shot back. "We could have rented a place –or a hotel room, or whatever. Instead, we call the crap we're standing in a house… and attend school like three perfectly good boy scouts."

Red eyes narrowed dangerously and there was a strict warning to close the topic in that intense stare. His brother huffed in irritation, stuffing his hands in his pockets.

"We don't know how long we're staying," Boomer spoke up, a large bundle of broken electric wires in his arms. "We can't have a stack of cash lying around and we don't have a bank account. We need the money to _buy_ our food and drinks now."

Butch chuckled darkly. "You're making it sound as if those bitches actually have power over us. If I want to punch the pizza deliverer in the stomach, I will. There sure as hell won't be any consequences; it's not like those girls could ever place us in jail."

"Enough," their leader commanded, his stern voice cutting through the air like a knife. "We already had this conversation. We're keeping a low profile and that's final."

"…Whatever," Butch muttered. "I'm placing that order. If you want to pay for it, you can answer the door yourself."

"You might want to lend us a hand first," Boomer voiced. "We need a place to sleep and I don't know about you, but I don't feel like gazing at the stars tonight."

Green eyes shot up to the ceiling, to where he could see the sky through a large hole. The missing piece of the ceiling was actually right in front of him. It didn't take a genius to figure out that the Powerpuff Girls had once made their entry that way. "I'm so ordering double toppings," he announced.

* * *

"Buttercup, you didn't turn the heat on," Bubbles sighed, a large sack of rice in her hands. She had been a second away from placing it into the pan, until she noticed the lack of steam and bubbles. She had asked her sister to turn it on ten minutes ago. Blossom was already baking the chicken… If they have to wait another ten minutes for the water to boil, that would really set them back.

The dark-haired girl didn't seem too concerned with it. "Oh yeah, I forgot," she commented, dropping the kitchen knife. "I was cutting the vegetables."

"And you really helped," she beamed. "But water doesn't boil itself."

Buttercup stepped beside her sister, eyeing the pan with cold water. "Of course it does," she smirked. Green eyes changed color and within a second, two red beams appeared from her eyes. The once calm water started to stir violently inside the pan.

"Buttercup, don't melt the- and is that even hygienic?" Blossom scolded.

"Who cares?" she replied, only pulling away when the water started to boil. "It does the trick, doesn't it? Go ahead, Bubbles."

The blonde nodded and tilted the rice into the pan. She remembered the first time they had tried to cook dinner together. They had accidently deformed a couple of pans and cut clean through the wooden cutting boards. After that first time, the Professor had kindly asked them to use their 'average powers' when cooking, telling them that food prepared with time and love, already tastes 'super'.

"I need the vegetables now," Blossom called out and Buttercup responded, placing them into mixture of chicken and spices. It looked and smelled absolutely delicious. "And the timer?" she asked.

"Already running. I'll get the tablecloth!" The blonde disappeared in a flash of light, returning a split second later with a clean, white cloth. There were no rules and restrictions regarding their superpowers in the rest of the house. Hovering in the air, she unfolded it and covered the kitchen table. Her feet touched the ground and she smiled at Buttercup. "Can you hand me the plates?" she asked.

A playful spark lightened in those eyes. "Sure… They're coming right up."

"Don't you dare," Blossom strictly warned. "Last time, you ended up breaking three dishes. You can walk or fly, but you're not throwing them across the room."

"I've gotten better!" the tomboy protested.

"Fine. Go ahead. But don't forget that we'll all be held responsible. If you break anything at all, I will put you in charge of seasoning. For six full weeks."

She and Bubbles both visibly cringed at that. The last time Buttercup had attempted to cook, their meal had been too salty, too spicy and too greasy altogether. Even the Professor had a difficult time trying to find some compliment to praise her effort with. "…I'll get them myself," Bubbles commented quietly.

After setting up the table, the timer announced that dinner was ready to be served. Blossom filled a fourth plate and set it aside for their Professor. When he has to work late, he usually forgets his dinner. They know how much he appreciates it when they leave him something to eat.

"Let's dig in," Buttercup declared. Their shared their meal with small chit-chat, a few laughs and a couple of teasing remarks. The peaceful atmosphere that hang around the kitchen, was a fragile harmony. Bubbles or Blossom didn't dare to bring the subject of the day up and Buttercup pretended to be oblivious about this fact. Neither of them wanted to think too much about the next morning.

"That was great, Blossom, thanks," the blonde-haired girl acclaimed. She raised from her seat to collect the dishes, when the sudden ring of the doorbell made her pause. "Who could that be?" she asked aloud. "The Professor?"

Blossom raised an eyebrow, her head tilted towards the direction of the door. "He never rings the bell."

"Maybe he forgot his keys?" she mused, walking towards the door. She didn't check through the peep-hole first; they were super-powered girls after all; they didn't have much to fear. Without hesitation, she opened the door and blinked when she met the sight of six stapled carton boxes. "Here's your delivery," a low, raspy voice sounded.

"Wha-" Bubbles voiced, catching the boxes out of habit. "Oh… uh," she stumbled.

"That'll be fifty-eight bucks," the guy called out and she tore her gaze away from the stack in her arms. "Oh – hi… Mitch," she greeted.

The tall, brown-haired youth only glared at her in irritation. They haven't talked to each other ever since he was send to juvenile hall and after flunking school, he had dropped out. "_Fifty-eight bucks_," he repeated.

Blossom quickly flew to her side. "We didn't order anything – at least, I don't… Buttercup?" she asked.

"Wasn't me!" what was called out from the kitchen.

"I didn't order anything either," Bubbles told her sister. "I mean, we just ate dinner."

Narrowed, brown eyes stared down them, heaving an annoyed sigh while he reached for a piece of paper. "Well, weren't you the Rowderpuff whatevers'?" he sneered, frowning at his delivery list. "Knew where you lived, so – "

Blossom tensed and Buttercup, that had now joined her sisters as well, yanked the piece of paper right out of his hands, green eyes skimming over the paper.

"Let me see that," Blossom demanded, leaning over her sister's shoulder. "Wait, there it is, Rowdyruff… Townsville Park's Observatory?"

"...Mojo's residence," Bubbles chipped in. "At least, before he was send to that prison. That place has been abandoned for years. We left it a gigantic mess, can they even live in there?"

"Great, I'm at the wrong address," Mitchell Mitchelson mumbled, taking his list back and reaching for the pizza boxes. The blond-haired girl quietly complied, handing it back to him. "Gotta run now too, damn it…"

He dumped the boxes back into the bag, hopping on his scooter without even glancing back at the three of them. The three Powerpuff Girls watched him as he took off in haste, disappearing around the corner of the street.

"Girls…" Blossom spoke quietly, closing the front door once more. "…We have an address."

* * *

"What part of 'keeping a low profile', didn't you understand?"

The empty pizza box was thrown on the table, right in front of Butch, who merely gave it a sideway glance. "What?" he replied monotonously.

Brick's unwavering stare met his. "_Read it_," he ordered.

The dark-haired youth raised his eyebrow, before taking another glance at the piece of carton. Their address was written on it, along with their title: 'Rowdyruff'.

"What does it even matter?" he replied, casually leaning back on his chair, balancing on two shanks. "Most of this boring town forgot about us. We don't even have a criminal record… We were never charged with anything." He grabbed a slice of pizza and waved around with it. He didn't miss the flare of anger on their leader's blank expression, but paid no attention to the warning. "So sit down and eat your pizza. You should," he commented dryly. "You _paid_ for it, after all."

He took a bite out of the slice and nearly choked on it when his chair tilted backwards and he landed flat on his back. Brick's hand instantly found his exposed neck, staring down at him with cold eyes, his expression void from any amusement.

"…You might be forgetting something." Piercing red eyes almost seemed to glow, reflecting only cruel malice. The tone he used was dangerously calm as he applied pressure to his locked grip. "Let me help you remember it." His knee pressed into the dark-haired youth's stomach, whose green eyes flickered in anger and pain, the piece of pizza stuck in his throat nearly exiting through his parted lips. The ruthless leader wasn't the only one aware of his brother's inability to breathe and when Boomer raised from his seat, Brick warned him to stay put with only a wave of his hand. "…Know who you are talking to, before you open that big mouth of yours, Butch."

A choked sound escaped the dark-haired boy's throat and for a moment, his hand almost seemed to reach for his brother's grip. Narrowed red eyes darkened and with one last glare, green eyes clenched shut and his hand fell to the ground.

This sign of surrender was instantly rewarded. And the piece of pizza was vomited up as Butch's choked coughs resounded through the room. Brick raised up, coldly staring down at his brother before turning his back to him. He met Boomer's dark-blue eyes, who wisely looked away and sank into his seat again.

After a minute, Butch pushed himself off the floor, gritting his teeth and wiping the salvia from his chin. He aggressively placed the chair back, yanking his box off the table and ate the rest of dinner at the other side of the room.

Neither of the other two Rowdyruff Boys spoke up and the rest of the hour was shared in complete silence.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 06

"….Blossom?"

The small, familiar high-pitched voice, made the young girl stir. Her eyelids fluttered open and she lifted her head from the pillow to see a shadow stand in her doorway. The dim light of the hallway illuminated her blonde hair and even through the darkness of the room, she could see the light-colored blue eyes of her sister.

Bubbles' hand was still at the doorknob, her other hand clutching the door hesitantly.

The red-haired girl rolled on her back, sighing quietly. She had spend most of the night lying awake, pondering and brooding over the threat that had surfaced. When she gazed at the bright red digits of her alarm clock, she concluded that she had finally fallen asleep.

She placed the blankets aside and patted the mattress. "Come here…" she yawned.

The blond-haired girl, in her long white nightdress, complied, quietly crawling next to her sister. Blossom had taken their shared bed when they moved to different rooms and even though they were all a lot taller now, there was still plenty of space to spare.

Pink eyes kindly gazed in worried, blue-colored ones and she pulled the young girl close into an embrace. This wasn't the first time Bubbles had spend the night in her room, but tonight, she didn't need to ask for the reason. The nightmare that plagued her thoughts as well, did not come from a world of dreams.

She gently rubbed her back like a mother would do to a child. It was the only comforting gesture she could give at the moment. She wanted nothing more than to tell Bubbles, like every similar night, that everything was going to be alright. But she could not do that. She could not make that promise.

She could only hold her sister close until they both fell into a restless sleep.

* * *

"He's still asleep," Buttercup commented, when she saw Blossom look around the living room. The leader of the Powerpuff Girls nodded. Yesterday, they had spend the rest of the evening talking about the Professor. While they did not necessarily want to keep anything from their father, they decided to keep the reappearance of the Rowdyruff Boys a secret. The Boy's motives were still unclear. No crime had, as of yet, been committed by them. They weren't naïve enough to hope it would stay that way, but they didn't want to give the Professor any more pressure. He had been working overtime for months on end as part of a specialized team, improving the DNA technology program that kept the city safe. He would frequently be absent for an entire night and return to his bed by the crack of dawn, all worn out, but content.

The three superheroes had reached a mutual understanding; it was too soon to announce the possibility of danger. They agreed to take the full responsibility of this decision, should it get out of hand, carrying the weight on their pair of shoulders. The Professor would only worry and the Mayor can't keep a secret. The people of Townsville deserved this moment of peace more than anything else. Breaking it would feel like a crime itself.

"I've left a sandwich for when he wakes up," Bubbles told her, grabbing her school bag from the floor. "I've already packed our lunches as well."

"Great," Blossom commented absently. "Then we're all set..."

The tone of her voice made her sister tense and the weight of the situation, together with the prospect of the day, made the air around them thicken. Blue eyes gazed worriedly at the red-haired girl. "Blossom…" she breathed.

Buttercup strode over to the both of them, her eyebrows knitted together in a stern frown, her own schoolbag already hanging loosely on her shoulder. She raised her arm and without warning, roughly hit the leader on her back. The red-haired girl flew forward, missing a few steps and nearly losing her balance as she stumbled along. Thrown out of her daze, she sharply turned around and had already parted her lips, but the brown school bag thrown into her arms, interrupted her spark of irritation.

"Don't space out," Buttercup told her.

Pink eyes softened in understanding and her own lips stretched into a small smile. She stuck her arms through the loops of the bag pack and took the hands of her two beloved sisters, as they exited the house together.

* * *

Psychics passed by without any commotion. The three of them had been able to arrive early at class, locating themselves strategically at the first two tables, close to the teacher's desk. Other classmates had already taken a seat behind them when the Boys entered the classroom. Solemn, pink eyes met radiant red-colored ones, the two leaders locking gaze in that instant. And at the sight of their barricaded position, a guileful smile appeared on his face and a low chuckle escaped his lips. Blossom averted her gaze when he took a position at the other side of the classroom.

Only after their third class Geography, did a crack appear in the strategy that had worked so well. For the third class in a row, they had managed to take the tables between their other classmates. That had been a relief by itself, but the hopes of a quiet school day disappeared when the three Boys stayed put in front of the class. They did not move to take a seat and the History teacher smiled at them. Brick strode forward, initiating a small conversation she could not overhear. Her shoulders were tense as she kept a close eye on the three brothers. Mr. Duyles, a kindhearted older man, nodded at the exchanged words.

Next to her, she softly heard her sister take an intake of breath and the dark-haired girl clenched her fist, her green eyes narrowing in anger. With a loudly beating hard, Blossom realized that she was using her superpowers to catch their dialogue. She tensed, but realized that no one would be able to track the use of super-hearing.

Mr. Duyles approached the three of them and she saw Bubbles stiffen in front of her, who was seated next to another classmate of theirs.

"Blossom, Bubbles, Buttercup," the older man addressed to them in a friendly tone. They had once saved Mr. Duyles from a burning building years ago and the kind man had always been grateful to them. "Sweet girls, I was hoping that you could assist me with a problem. We have three, new students in our class and they have not yet received all of their school material…" Round, blue eyes widened and lips parted as Bubbles could anticipate what Mr. Duyles was going to ask them. Her hands folded around her History book and squeezed it tighter. "They would be forever grateful if you could share your books with them for this one time."

Challenging, red eyes stared down at them with a smug smile. Blossom could feel her cheeks heat up in anger. They could not refuse this request. They had already placed their books on the table and they couldn't pretend that they forgot to bring them.

"Bubbles, you can stay seated if Julie here would take the empty seat next to John…" The classmate nodded and picked up her belongings, giving the Boys a shy smile before fulfilling the teacher's request. "Blossom, if you could take the empty desk at the back of the room, Buttercup can stay seated as well."

The girl in question tensed. The teacher turned away from them and she slowly, reluctantly, raised from a seat she did not want to leave. She took hold of her school bag and her pencils, frowning as she stepped beside her desk. Brick approached her, thoughtfully picking up her History Book for her, placing it underneath his arm.

She looked up to see his hand mockingly reaching out to her. "You heard the teacher," he smirked.

"Yeah, we'll be best partners!" Blossom flinched when Buttercup leaned over her table, grabbing his hand wholeheartedly. A rebellious smirk framed her face, squeezing his fingers tightly in return and for a moment, red eyes flashed in aversion.

Blossom took that cue. She snatched her sister's History book from her desk. For a split second she met Bubbles' gaze, before reaching out and clutching a blue-colored sweater. Brick turned around in anger, but the locked grip of Buttercup only tightened on his hand.

Blossom yanked the blond-haired boy to the other side of the classroom, before he had enough time to approach her sister. Bubbles openly stared at the sudden change, shifting her attention to the green Rowdyruff Boy that would become her neighbor for the next forty-five minutes. Dark-green eyes watched the scene between Buttercup and Brick with a spark of amusement, casually taking his seat next to her.

"Take a seat, so we can both _share_ that History book together," Buttercup told him, the sarcasm dripping from her voice. When she released his hand, the entire posture of the red-haired boy changed. Eyes blazed in anger, his gaze darkened as he harshly and loudly dropped the book in front of Buttercup. The dark-haired girl wasn't one to get intimidated easily, opening it to a random page in response.

The old History teacher with his optimistic nature, never caught wind of the silent battle that flared in his own classroom. He started to tell them stories about the Dark Ages, explaining what kind of environment the common folk lived in.

Boomer hadn't been too thrilled when Blossom had forced him to sit next to her. "There was absolutely no need for that," he commented coldly. The leader of the Powerpuff girls huffed at that, but didn't respond with words. Bubbles sent her a grateful smile from across the class and that was all that mattered.

This was their last subject of the day, Thursday being the shortest day of their week. The large break at half past twelve would last the entire afternoon. The three Powerpuff Girls could not wait for the bell to ring, just like most of their classmates.

Bubbles was genuinely relieved with Butch as her book-sharing partner instead of Boomer or Brick. He had not given the History book a sideward glance and leaned back in his seat, not paying attention to their teacher. She could not be bothered less, since he paid no attention to her either.

The silence between the two clashing personalities behind her though, was a lot more tense. Clouded, ruby eyes locked on the blank chalk board seemed to be in a thought of his own, probably fantasizing creative ways to paint the walls in red. Buttercup wisely kept her own gaze on their teacher. She only held distaste and loathing for the leader of the Rowdyruff Boys and one wrong word or glance could be enough to provoke her. She wouldn't admit it, but she was relieved that she managed to save Blossom from having to sit next to him. She herself could not be intimidated by his vicious gaze and the idea of combat, as long as it was outside school property, would only excite her. But she could not and would not, stand back if he only pointed a mere finger in the direction of her sister.

And, outside her knowledge, at the other side of the classroom, that was exactly what was eating Blossom up as the minutes passed. Although she wasn't nearly as impulsive as Buttercup, she had a very protective nature. Eventually, her irritation grew larger than her ability to restrain herself. "_Stop_ staring at her," she warned him.

Cold, dark-blue eyes met her pink ones for a moment, before averting his gaze back to the object of his fascination. "…Don't interfere with my business," he strictly informed her. Her narrowed eyes almost flared red for a second, the intensity of her glare enough to almost accidentally tab into her superpowers.

Boomer did not pay it much attention, his gaze still on the blond-haired girl when he addressed the leader of the Powerpuff Girls once more. He obviously did not hold much respect to her authority, treating her more like a nuisance than a respected individual. "Hey you…" he muttered. "This is your last class as well, right?"

She kept her lips stiffly pressed together, not even considering to provide him with the information he was asking for. But the blond-haired youth had already known the answer, for he then added an: "Of course it is…"

The last few minutes passed with only the voice of their teacher resounding through the classroom. When the school bell rang, students instantly flew from their seats. Blossom quickly rose from her own seat as well, collecting her belonging and stuffing it inside her bag along with Buttercup's History book. She was reluctant to approach her sisters with Brick sitting that close to them and with one shared look with Bubbles, she asked her to walk to her instead. Blue eyes hesitated, glancing at the boy next to her, but complied to meet her at a larger distance.

Blossom turned her head back at Buttercup, who then approached the two of them as well. The female leader walked behind her with her backpack on her shoulder, glancing back one last time at their three opponents, before exiting the classroom.


End file.
